My daughters are SO picky! Help!

I have an 18 month old daughter who used to eat everything you placed in front of her face. I also have a 4 month old daughter that thinks she can't survive without a bottle in her mouth. Lately, my oldest will only eat hot dogs, chicken nuggets/chicken, or spaghetti noodles. After my youngest was born i tried letting my oldest feed herself. It was messy but it seemed to be working.. Now, she won't really eat much at all. She won't let me feed her either. I hate watching her go with out food but I don't know what else to do since she won't eat... Also, My youngest will not take a pacifier even if her life depended on it.. She won't go to sleep unless she has a bottle in her mouth. How can I get her to take a pacifier?

Hey there! I feel your pain - my little boy is becoming a bit of a picky eater and pushing away foods he used to like. He, also, wants to feed himself and not have me feed him but gets so little food, it seems like. Research shows that kids need to have food placed in front of them over and over for them to eventually eat it. I just continue to put different foods in front of him and encourage him to try them. I don't think its worth making a big fight out of. Also, I sneak healthy food into his favorite dishes. For example, he has a cup of warm milk before bed but if he hasn't eaten well, I add some multi-grain cereal/rice cereal to the milk and he gets some good iron and vitamins that way. He is not a fan of eating his sweet potatoes or squash anymore but if I add a bit of applesauce, he will eat it. Hang in there - your daughter will move on to new phases if you keep offering new things!

I agree, just continue to offer a variety of healthy foods and don't stress. Sometimes it's helpful to look at what a toddler is eating over the course of a few days rather than one single day since their budding independence can lead to some irregular eating patterns. Something else I always like is that my kids love to dip foods so just giving them a dip or two makes eating more fun. I also think you are on the right track by letting her feed herself.  

I thought of you today! My little boy was eating some yogurt and not getting too much in his mouth, so I sat down with a second spoon and let him continue to feed himself but I gave him some bites in between his own. It worked pretty well! Hope this helps. :-)